A
American Express Network Decline CodesAmex 189
Deny - Canceled or Closed Merchant
Technical
System or connectivity issues
Do Not Retry
Retry will not succeed
Description
The American Express network has closed or canceled the merchant identifier. The transaction cannot be processed.
Recommended Action
Validate the merchant identifier used in the transaction. Contact your payment service provider.
Common Causes
- Merchant SE (Service Establishment) number has been closed
- Merchant account terminated by American Express
- Incorrect merchant identifier used
Recovery Tips
- Contact your payment service provider to resolve the merchant status
- Verify you are using the correct merchant identifier
Quick Reference
Code
189
Category
Technical
Retryable
No
Source
Amex
Related Decline Codes
101Non-Retryable
Expired Card / Invalid Expiration Date
The card has expired or the expiration date provided is invalid.
109Non-Retryable
Invalid Merchant
The American Express network does not recognise the merchant with the submitted transaction details. This needs to be investigated by the acquirer or payment service provider.
110Non-Retryable
Invalid Amount
The card issuer has declined the transaction due to a format or amount field error.
111Non-Retryable
Invalid Account
The card issuer is unable to find the card or account number. The account may be closed or the number may be incorrect.
Amex 189 recovery
Recover more payments like Amex 189
Slicker handles codes like 189 by combining decline reason, issuer behavior, BIN data, and timing signals to choose the next best recovery action.
Analyze this in our payment data